Developing Countries: Currency

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what system his Department uses for recording currency transactions from sterling into local currency for use in developing countries.

Gareth Thomas: DFID does not keep records of how, or at what rate, its sterling transactions are converted into local currency once they reach their recipient.
	The majority of our funding is made in sterling. All transactions in foreign currency are recorded as a sterling equivalent, based on the exchange rate for that day. DFID's standard payment systems provide the necessary evidence that money has been paid to the intended recipient. All financial aid to overseas governments is paid through Crown Agents Bank who provides documentation demonstrating that the funds have reached the partner government's Central Exchequer. For non-financial aid our own accounting and banking systems provide this assurance.

EU Defence Policy

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British armed forces personnel have participated in EU military operations since 1997, broken down by cap badge.

Bob Ainsworth: British armed forces personnel have participated in five EU military operations or support missions since 2003; there was no participation by UK military personnel in EU military operations before 2003.
	Operation Concordia was an EU Military Operation in the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia from March 2003 to December 2003. Three British personnel participated.
	Operation Artemis was an EU Military Operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo from June 2003 to September 2003. From July 2003 to August 2003, 84 UK military personnel were involved.
	Operation Althea is an EU Military Operation in the Balkans which started in December 2004 and is still ongoing. The units listed have participated in this operation. Since March 2007 only individuals deployed as Staff Officers to HQ have been involved.
	Battalion Grenadier Guards—December 2004 to March 2005.
	he Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5(th) Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland—April 2005 to September 2005.
	1(st )Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles—October 2005 to May 2006.
	2(nd) Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment (Green Howards)—April 2006 to September 2006.
	1(st) Battalion Welsh Guards - October 2006 to March 2007.
	EU civilian-military supporting action to African Union Mission in Sudan (and recently Somalia) from July 2005 is still ongoing. Three UK military personnel were deployed from October 2005 to December 2005.
	EUFOR RD Congo (Democratic Republic of the Congo) from April 2006 to November 2006. 2 UK officers participated; one at EU Headquarters at Potsdam and one in the theatre Headquarters.
	Detailed information on the cap badges of individual officers deployed on EU operations is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Type 45 Destroyers

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received on the advantages to be derived from equipping Type-45 Destroyers with Tactical Tomahawk cruise missiles.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 25 July 2007
	Since the Type 45 Destroyer project reached its main investment decision (Main Gate) in 2000, the Ministry of Defence has received various representations, including from industry and members of this House, not least the hon. Gentleman himself, about equipping Type 45 Destroyers with Tactical Tomahawk cruise missiles (TLAM).

Frontiers: Personal Records

Julian Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether the e-borders programme will continue to have passenger name record data as an integrated part of that programme;
	(2)  what criteria are used to determine suitable consortia to deliver the full e-borders programme.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 23 July 2007
	The collection of Advanced Passenger Information and Passenger Name Record (PNR) data is part of the e-Borders model, and the programme is committed to integrating these elements as part of the long term solution. In the short-term, the e-Borders pilot Project Semaphore is trialling the collection of PNR data from carriers from selected routes. This will enable us to build the most robust long term solution for full capture of PNR data that meets the requirements of the border agencies and is sustainable by the industry.
	The e-Borders programme will appoint the successful service provider following a comprehensive and detailed evaluation of the bidders responses. Qualitative criteria, combined with an assessment of cost will determine the most economically advantageous bid from the point of view of the Home Office. The qualitative criteria include the ability to meet the authority's business, technical and implementation requirements, while also being commercially acceptable to the Home Office.
	In addition the successful consortia will be required to cross a number of financial capacity and robustness thresholds to ensure that it can meet its financial obligations over the lifetime of the contract.

Police: Crimes of Violence

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many assaults against  (a) police community support officers and  (b) regular police officers on frontline duty there were in (i) Essex and (ii) England and Wales in each of the last five years; and what percentage of all officers in each category these figures represented.

Tony McNulty: The numbers of serious and other assaults on police officers and operational police staff are published each year in the HMIC Annual Report and have been given in the table.
	These data are not available by individual rank and therefore have been provided for police officers and operational staff as combined figure.
	
		
			  Serious and other assaults( 1)  on police officers and operational police staff from 2001-02 to 2004-05( 2, 3) 
			   Force 
			   Essex  England and Wales( 4) 
			  2001-02   
			 Serious 0 400 
			 Other 225 12,696 
			
			  2002-03   
			 Serious 0 263 
			 Other 260 14,097 
			
			  2003-04   
			 Serious 1 253 
			 Other 374 11,401 
			
			  2004-05   
			 Serious 2 393 
			 Other 262 12,825 
			 (1) Data collated on behalf of and published by HMIC. Serious assaults are those for which the charge would be under Sections 18 and 20 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. Recording practices may vary between forces. (2 )Financial year runs 1 April to 31 March inclusive. (3 )Data for 2005-06 has been collated but not yet been validated. Figures will be available in the HMIC Annual Report 2005-06. (4 )Greater Manchester was unable to provide data for 2003-04. Lancashire and West Midlands were not able to provide breakdowns of numbers for different assaults in 2003-04, however the number of overall assaults was 462 and 1,112 respectively. Lancashire and West Midlands were not able to provide breakdowns of numbers for different assaults in 2004-05, however the number of overall assaults was 521 and 910 respectively. 
		
	
	
		
			  Percentage of police and operational staff being assaulted( 1)  from 2001-02 to 2004-05( 2, 3) 
			  Percentage 
			   Force 
			   Essex  England and Wales( 4) 
			 2001-02 n/a(5) n/a(5) 
			 2002-03 4.9 6.6 
			 2003-04 6.6 5.0 
			 2004-05 6.5 5.4 
			 (1 )Data collated on behalf of and published by HMIC. Serious assaults are those for which the charge would be under Sections 18 and 20 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. Recording practices may vary between forces. (2 )Financial year runs 1 April to 31 March inclusive. (3 )Data for 2005-06 has been collated but not yet been validated. Figures will be available in the HMIC Annual Report 2005-06. (4 )Greater Manchester was unable to provide data for 2003-04. Lancashire and West Midlands were not able to provide breakdowns of numbers for different assaults in 2003-04 or 2004-05. (5 )Staff strength by headcount is not available for 2001-02.

Minister for the South West

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what visits the Minister for the South West has made in that capacity since her appointment.

Iain Wright: The Minister for the South West has embarked on an ongoing series of visits in the region. Details of the visits undertaken so far are tabulated as follows:
	
		
			   Visit undertaken 
			 13 July 2007 egional Development Agency, Exeter 
			 16 July 2007 Swindon 
			 25 July 2007 Tewkesbury and Cheltenham, Gloucestershire 
			 30 July 2007 St. Austell and Truro, Cornwall 
			 1 August 2007 Bristol (and wider West of England visit) 
			 21 August 2007 Tewkesbury, Gloucester and Cheltenham, Gloucestershire 
			 23 August 2007 Poole 
			 24 August 2007 Shepton Mallet and Taunton, Somerset

Mr. Robert Adewumni

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment has been made of the reasons for Mr. Robert Adewumni being able to circumvent the restraint order placed upon him following his conviction for fraud relating to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Vera Baird: I have been asked to reply.
	Mr. Adewunmi and his wife were arrested on 5 April 2005. Mr. Adewunmi pleaded guilty to offences of money laundering and fraudulent trading for which he was sentenced, on 10 March 2006, to a total of four years' imprisonment; his wife admitted an offence of money laundering for which she was sentenced to six months' imprisonment.
	After sentence, confiscation proceedings were postponed to complete the necessary investigations. A restraint order had been made against their assets on 24 May 2005, which had a worldwide effect and also contained a provision for the repatriation of movable assets held abroad. The order also contained a clear warning that breach of the order would amount to contempt of court. This had been considered to be sufficient to prevent further dissipation of assets.
	On discovery that Mr. Adewunmi had in fact breached the order, a money laundering investigation was begun; this showed how Mr. Adewunmi was able further to dissipate the assets. As a consequence of this behaviour, proceedings for contempt were taken against Mr. Adewunmi and, on 22 June 2007, confiscation orders were made against both Mr. and Mrs. Adewunmi; Mr. Adewunmi was also sentenced for a fraud on Slough borough council. In addition, Mr. Adewunmi admitted being in breach of the restraint order. As a result, he was committed to prison for 18 months' consecutive to the sentence which he was already serving.
	It has been calculated that Mr. Adewunmi transferred abroad a total of £137,673.56 out of the £867,200 stolen by him; some of this money was repatriated but the majority is caught in the confiscation order which he has to pay.

Bridges: Safety

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the implications of the recent road bridge collapse in the United States for the safety of road bridges in the United Kingdom; and what plans she has to investigate the safety of the  (a) Severn Bridge and  (b) Second Severn Crossing.

Tom Harris: Immediately after the Minnesota bridge collapse, the Highways Agency began an investigation of the information it holds about bridges and other structures. From the information available regarding the bridge in Minnesota, the Highways Agency has concluded there are no bridges identical on the network of motorways and major A roads in England. The Highways Agency is however undertaking a review of it's maintenance and inspection processes. If improvements are needed, these will be communicated to other UK bridge owners, including local highway authorities, who are responsible for the majority of other road bridges.
	 Severn Crossing Bridges
	In April 2006, the Highways Agency announced that it will be undertaking a programme of inspection work on the main suspension cables for the M48 Severn bridge. Work is under way to monitor and address the corrosion that has been found in the suspension cables and over the next year, the Agency will be considering a long-term strategy for the bridge. The bridge remains safe for use, although as a precautionary measure, vehicles over 7.5 tonnes are restricted to lane one in each direction.
	No additional investigations are currently planned for the M4 Second Severn Crossing. Severn River Crossing plc. are already required to undertake a rigorous inspection regime and the findings are regularly reviewed by the Government's representative and the Highways Agency.

Ambulance Services: Standards

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of Category A emergency ambulance dispatches reached patients within the Government's target of eight minutes in  (a) urban areas and  (b) rural areas in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department does not classify ambulance trusts as urban or rural, and therefore performance data is not reported against these categories.
	All ambulance trusts are required to meet the same national response time standards irrespective of location. Category A calls (those presenting conditions that may be immediately life threatening) should be responded to within eight minutes in 75 per cent. of cases and Category B calls (those conditions that are serious but not immediately life threatening) should be responded to within 19 minutes in 95 per cent. of cases.

Cancer: Research

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total expenditure on research into  (a) Hodgkin's lymphoma and  (b) non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was in each year since 1997 from (i) his Department's Research and Development budget and (ii) the Medical Research Council.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department does not collect expenditure data at that level of detail required. Over the last 10 years, the main part of the Department's research and development budget has been allocated to and managed by national health service organisations. These organisations account for their use of the allocations they receive from the Department in an annual research and development report. The reports identify total, aggregated expenditure on national priority areas, including cancer. Details of individual projects supported in the NHS, including those concerned with site-specific cancers, can be found on the national research register at
	www.dh.gov.uk/research
	The Medical Research Council (MRC), one of the main agencies through which the Government support medical and clinical research, is an independent body which receives its grant in aid from the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.
	MRC expenditure on research on all forms of lymphoma including Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, for the years for which figures are available, is shown in the table.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 1998-99 0.4 
			 1999-2000 0.4 
			 2000-01 0.5 
			 2001-02 0.6 
			 2002-03 1.0 
			 2003-04 1.2 
			 2004-05 1.2 
			 2005-06 1.7 
		
	
	Implementation of the Department's research strategy, 'Best Research for Best Health', will result in an expansion of our research programmes and in significant new funding opportunities for health research. In particular, the Hammersmith and St. Mary's and Imperial College Biomedical Research Centre (BRC), the Oxford BRC and the University College London Hospital BRC, propose to undertake research on both Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as part of broader-based research themes to which the Department has allocated a total of £12.5 million over five years.

Obesity

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 11 June 2007,  Official Report, column 876W, on obesity, if he will publish the findings of the core expert review group which validated the approach taken and outputs to date; who the members of the core expert review group are; and how often the group has met since 2005.

Ben Bradshaw: The key findings underpinning the social marketing work are published in the MRC Human Nutrition Research Centre's report, "The Healthy Living Social Marketing initiative: A review of the evidence". Details of the group members are on Page 1 of the report. The group have met on three occasions since 2005.

Pensions

Martin Horwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 24 July 2007,  Official Report, columns 1010-1W, for what reasons it is not permissible for more than 25 per cent. of the total of a private pension to be drawn in cases where the total of the pension rights are larger than one per cent. of the lifetime allowance.

Kitty Ussher: The Government provide pensions tax relief to support saving to produce an income in retirement. These reliefs include the ability to take up to 25 per cent. of a pension fund as a tax free lump sum, but it is right that the remainder should be used to produce an income throughout retirement.
	Other savings vehicles such as ISA's are available for individuals to make additional savings for other purposes.

Stamp Duties

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the average stamp duty paid by first-time buyers.

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average stamp duty paid by a first time buyer was in  (a) each Government office region in England and  (b) England in the last period for which figures are available.

Kitty Ussher: HMRC administrative systems do not identify whether a stamp duty land taxpayers a first time buyer. It is not therefore possible to derive an estimate of the average stamp duty land tax paid by first time buyers. However, it is estimated that close to half of all first time home buyers are exempt from stamp duty land tax, taking into account the £125,000 starting threshold and the enhanced £150,000 threshold which is available in 2,000 disadvantaged wards.

Taxation

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate  (a) direct and  (b) indirect taxes as a percentage of gross income for households with an income (i) lower and (ii) higher than (A) 95 per cent., (B) 99 per cent., (C) 75 per cent. and (D) 25 per cent. of all households; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 5 September 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate (a) direct and (b) indirect taxes as a percentage of gross income for households with an income (i) lower and (ii) higher than (A) 95 percent of all households, (B) 99 percent of all households, (C) 75 percent of all households and (D) 25 per cent, of all households. (152707).
	Estimates of household income and related taxes are provided in the ONS analysis 'The effects of taxes and benefits on household income'. The latest analysis for 2005/06 was published on the National Statistics website on 17th May 2007 at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/taxesbenefits. The analysis is based on data from the Expenditure and Food Survey, which is a sample survey covering approximately 7,000 households in the UK.
	Gross income includes income from wages, occupational pensions, self-employment income, investment income, and income from state benefits, all before tax. Direct taxes include income tax, national insurance contributions and council tax. The indirect taxes include VAT, duties, and a number of smaller items such as television licences. Indirect taxes also include intermediate taxes—these are indirect taxes paid by companies which are deemed to be passed onto households through the prices they pay for goods and services. A more detailed breakdown showing each of the different taxes appears in the annual article.
	Indirect taxes, when expressed as a proportion of gross income appears particularly high for those on lower income, although this result needs to be interpreted carefully. Estimates of indirect taxes are estimated based on household expenditure. It should be remembered that measured expenditure will not necessarily balance with measured income for the year. This is especially true for low income households where average measured income is significantly lower than average expenditure. For these households, indirect taxes (which reflect expenditure) are not being met solely from current income, and so indirect taxes are very high when expressed as a proportion of gross income.
	There are a number of plausible reasons why for some households, expenditure might exceed income. Households with low incomes may draw on their savings or borrow in order to finance their expenditure. In addition, the lower income households in particular include some groups, who have, or report, very little income (for example, self-employed people starting a business or someone who has just been made redundant). In these cases, expenditure is not being met from current income. Some types of receipts are not included as income in the EPS e.g. inheritance and severance payments. In some cases, the information given on expenditure is not consistent with that on income received because of timing differences.
	It is usually accepted that surveys have problems picking up data from extremely high income households. With the EPS having a sample of approximately 7,000 households, interpreting data for this high income group should be done with caution.
	
		
			  Taxes as a percentage of gross income( 1) —United Kingdom, 2005-06 
			   Percentage 
			  Indirect taxes( 2)  
			 Income lower than 99% of all households 15 
			 Income higher or equal to 99% of all households 7 
			   
			 Income lower than 95% of all households 16 
			 Income higher or equal to 95% of all households 9 
			   
			 Income lower than 75% of all households 18 
			 Income higher or equal to 75% of all households 11 
			   
			 Income lower than 25% of all households 25 
			 Income higher or equal to 25% of all households 13 
			   
			  Direct taxes( 3)  
			 Income lower than 99% of all households 20 
			 Income higher or equal to 99% of all households 24 
			   
			 Income lower than 95% of all households 20 
			 Income higher or equal to 95% of all households 26 
			   
			 Income lower than 75% of all households 17 
			 Income higher or equal to 75% of all households 24 
			   
			 Income lower than 25% of all households 10 
			 Income higher or equal to 25% of all households 22 
			   
			  Total taxes  
			 Income lower than 99% of all households 35 
			 Income higher or equal to 99% of all households 31 
			   
			 Income lower than 95% of all households 36 
			 Income higher or equal to 95% of all households 35 
			   
			 Income lower than 75% of all households 35 
			 Income higher or equal to 75% of all households 35 
			   
			 Income lower than 25% of all households 35 
			 Income higher or equal to 25% of all households 35 
			 (1) Households are ranked by equivalised disposable income. (2) Includes VAT, Vehicle Excise duty and taxes on tobacco, alcohol and hydrocarbon oil. (3 )Income tax, Employees' National contributions (Including tax relief at source on life assurance premiums) and Council tax and Northern Ireland rates after deducting discounts.  Source: Office for National Statistics

Crime: Mentally ill

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what research his Department has conducted into whether people with mental health problems who are  (a) victims of crime and  (b) witnesses of crime face particular difficulties when seeking access to justice.

Bridget Prentice: My Department has a research programme examining the experiences of vulnerable court users in both civil (including family) and criminal proceedings. One of the identified groups is individuals' with mental health problems. Within this programme, we have commissioned two complimentary literature reviews, due for publication by 2008. One focuses on how people with mental health problems access and experience justice and the barriers they face. The other focuses more on the implementation and impact of legislation on individuals with mental health problems. These reports discuss, but do not specifically delineate between victims and witnesses.
	During 2007 we expect to commission a 12-16 month project to determine how effectively the court system supports the complex and specific needs of individuals with mental health problems, learning disabilities or limited mental capacity. The focus will be on parties, victims and witnesses in both civil (including family) and criminal proceedings.
	The Office for Criminal Justice Reform published a report on the evaluation of the use of special measures for Vulnerable and Intimidated Witnesses (VIWs), one of the criterion for which is having a mental disorder. The report found that VIWs were, and felt, better assisted than prior to the implementation of the special measures. But there continued to be a significant unmet need. However, there have been substantial developments in Government work relating to victims and witnesses since this piece of research was commissioned in 2000-01, which qualifies the conclusions of the study. The report has been placed in the libraries of the House and can also be found at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/rdsolr0106.pdf.

Departments: Disabled

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of people employed by  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies are disabled.

Bridget Prentice: Tables 1 and 2 following shows the total permanent staff and number of disabled staff employed by the former Department for Constitutional Affairs and its Agencies as at 30 September 2006, the latest published figures taken from the Office for National Statistics Civil Service employment statistics. Tables 3 and 4 shows the total permanent staff and number of disabled staff currently employed by the Ministry of Justice Department and its Agencies as at 30 June 2007 taken from their respective internal Human Resource records. Published figures will be available in September 2007.
	Table 1 shows the total permanent staff and number of disabled staff currently employed by the former DCA as at 30 September 2006.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			   Percentage 
			  Depts and agencies  Declared disabled  Non- disabled  Not declared or non- response  Total  Declared disabled  Not declared or non- response 
			 Department for Constitutional Affairs (excl. agencies) 100 1,510 510 2,120 4.6 24.1 
		
	
	Table 2 shows the total permanent staff and number of disabled staff employed by the former DCA Agencies as at 30 September 2006.
	
		
			  Table 2 
			   Percentage 
			  Depts and agencies  Declared disabled  Non- disabled  Not declared or non- response  Total  Declared disabled  Not declared or non- response 
			 HM Courts Service 630 17,160 4,310 22,090 2.8 19.5 
			 Land Registry 540 7,670 60 8,270 6.5 0.7 
			 National Archives 30 110 410 560 5.9 74.5 
			 Public Guardianship Office 10 260 70 340 3.9 19.7 
			 Tribunals Service 90 1,610 1,270 2,960 3.0 42.7 
			 Scotland Office 0 50 20 70 0.0 32.4 
			 Wales Office n/a 50 10 60 n/a 17.2 
		
	
	Table 3 reflects the total permanent staff and number of disabled staff currently employed by the Ministry of Justice Department excluding its Agencies as at 30 June 2007.
	
		
			  Table 3 
			  MOJ department  Total staff (headcount)  Disabled staff (headcount)  Percentage of disabled 
			 Ministry of Justice (excluding Agencies) 2,139 97 6.14 
			 Office for Criminal Justice Reform 247 6 3.40 
			 National Offender Management Service 1,425 16 1.97 
			 Corporate Services(1) 250 250 (2)— 
			 Total(3) 3,811 119 3.83 
			 (1) An estimate for the staff transferring from the Home Office to the MOJ HQ corporate services is provided, as the exact figure of staff is not yet confirmed. (2) Estimate. (3) An average percentage of the total number of declared responses is provided excluding the estimate for corporate services. 
		
	
	Table 4 reflects the total permanent staff and number of disabled staff currently employed by the Ministry of Justice Department Agencies as at 30 June 2007.
	
		
			  Table 4 
			  MOJ department  Total staff (headcount)  Disabled staff (headcount)  Percentage of disabled 
			 HM Prisons Service 50,092 1,614 6.04 
			 HM Courts Service 21,129 582 3.48 
			 Public Guardianship Office 337 12 4.90 
			 Tribunals Service 2,938 85 5.26 
			 Scotland Office and Office of Advocate General 82 * — 
			 Wales Office 52 * — 
			 Land Registry 8,324 519 6.2 
			 National Archives 591 30 5.08 
			 Northern Ireland Court Service 748 32 5.85 
			 Total(1) 84,293 2,874 5.25 
			 (1) An average percentage of the total number of declared responses is provided excluding the Scotland Office and Office of Advocate General and Wales Offices. An asterisk (*) denotes a number below five (not added into total). Code of Practise does not follow figures to be published that would identify individuals. Where numbers are suppressed the percentages are not shown and are indicated by a dash (—).

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  when he expects to answer the letter to him dated 9 July from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ben Taylor, Glaisyers Solicitors;
	(2)  when he expects to answer the letter to him dated 12 July from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs. K. Kerry.

Michael Wills: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and Lord Chancellor replied to the right hon. Member on 6 September 2007. I apologise for the unacceptable delay.

National Offender Management Information System

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department has spent on commissioning and procuring the C-NOMIS IT system; how much of that total sum has been spent  (a) on outside agencies and consultants and  (b) internally within the Department, broken down by the internal divisions, agencies and services within the Department, including the Prison Service, the Probation Service and the National Offender Management Service, that spent the money; and when C-NOMIS will be operational within (i) the Prison Service and (ii) the Probation Service.

David Hanson: The total NOMS expenditure of £155 million to date can be split approximately 85 per cent. contractors, suppliers and consultants, with the remainder split across in house civil service expenditure.
	Following consideration by the National Offender Management Service Board a decision has been made to conduct a rapid review of the NOMIS programme. This review will consider the affordability of the overall programme and will report to Ministers in the autumn with recommendations for a revised programme. Decisions about the project including timescales will be made once this is considered.

Re-offenders

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the two-year reconviction rates were in each year since 1995 in  (a) England and Wales,  (b) South East England and  (c) Kent.

Michael Wills: The table shows the available figures for the two year re-offending rate for adult offenders in England and Wales in the first quarter of each year. It shows the proportion of these offenders who committed a proven offence within two years of their release from prison or the commencement of a community sentence.
	
		
			   Two year re-offending rate (percentage) 
			 2000 57.6 
			 2002 58.5 
			 2003 57.6 
			 2004 55.5 
		
	
	Figures for earlier years are not comparable with this data. Further information is available in the most recent Statistical Bulletin on adult re-offending which can be found at the following addresses:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs07/hosb0607.pdf
	No data is available at regional or county level.

Cambodia: Politics and Government

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support the  (a) UK,  (b) EU and  (c) UN has pledged to aid the bringing to trial of those involved in the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia; and when he expects talks on procedural issues to be resolved.

Meg Munn: pursuant to the reply, 18 June  2 007, Official Report, c. 1473W
	I regret that an inaccurate answer was given by my right hon. Friend the then Minister for Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs (Mr. McCartney) to part of the hon. Member's question. The answer given states that the UK has contributed £1.5 million to the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. In fact, to date, £1 million has been contributed. Further payments will be made this year.

Coalition Information Centre

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the  (a) history and  (b) role of the Coalition Information Centre.

Meg Munn: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Bill Rammell) to my hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) on 9 July 2003,  Official Report, columns 816-817W.

Departments: Recruitment

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people have been appointed to his Department outside Civil Service grades in the last 30 days.

Meg Munn: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not hold central records of staff recruited outside the civil service grades on short-term contracts for particular projects. To collate this information would incur disproportionate cost.
	The FCO publishes information annually on appointments to the public bodies for which it is responsible. Data for 2006-07 was published on 9 May in the FCO departmental report.

Ethiopia: Human Rights

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on alleged on-going human rights abuses in Ethiopia.

Meg Munn: The Government treat with concern any allegations of human rights abuses, wherever they occur.
	We closely monitor the human rights situation in Ethiopia, in consultation with our international partners. The UK raises its concerns on human rights with the Ethiopian Government at regular opportunities, including at senior levels. We shall continue to do so.
	Most recently, our Ambassador in Addis Ababa raised concerns about the human rights situation in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia with Ethiopian Ministers during August. My noble Friend the Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN, Lord Malloch-Brown, has also raised concerns about the human rights situation in Ethiopia with the Speaker of the Ethiopian Parliament, when he visited the UK in July, and, during August, with the Ethiopian Ambassador to the UK.
	In the Ogaden region of Ethiopia, we understand that a UN assessment team will provide an appraisal of the current situation there after visiting the region. We look forward to this assessment.
	The Government welcome the pardoning of the political opposition leaders in Ethiopia who were recently convicted of serious crimes. This move should help create the conditions for improved political dialogue in Ethiopia, including the human rights situation.

Krishna Maharaj

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on developments relating to the clemency application of Krishna Maharaj; and what further steps his Department intends to take.

Meg Munn: Further to my right hon. Friend the then Minister for Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs' (Mr. McCartney) letter of 22 May to the governor of Florida in support of Krishna Maharaj's clemency petition, our consul in Orlando attended Mr, Maharaj's clemency waiver hearing on 9 August.
	The Aides to the Florida Clemency Board granted a waiver which means his clemency case could be heard by the full clemency board, including Governor Crist, as early as December. We welcome this decision and remain in close contact with Mr. Maharaj's legal team about the full consideration of his clemency plea by the Florida Clemency Board.
	We continue to offer appropriate consular assistance to Mr. Maharaj and our consul in Orlando last visited him on 24 August.

Yuan Weijing

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Chinese government over the detention of the Chinese justice campaigner, Yuan Weijing.

Meg Munn: My noble Friend the Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN, Lord Malloch-Brown, raised immediate concern for the well-being of Yuan Weijing when he met Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui during his visit to Beijing on 28-30 August. We continue to monitor this case.

Chemicals: Health Hazards

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on the presence of harmful chemicals in household items; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: The Department has however not commissioned or evaluated any specific research on the presence of harmful chemicals in household items.
	The safety of products containing chemicals is governed by the Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging for Supply) Regulations 2002, which is administered by the Health and Safety Executive. These regulations require that manufacturers identify the dangers of products containing chemicals and package them safely. If hazardous, the product must be labelled with warning symbols indicating the dangers and with phrases explaining the dangers and how to use the product safely.
	The Department administers the General Product Safety Regulations 2005, which implement the EC general product safety directive (2001/95/EC). These regulations apply to all consumer products that are not covered (and to the same extent) by specific safety legislation. The regulations require that manufacturers ensure that products present the minimum risk compatible with the product's use and that they are accompanied by appropriate warnings and instructions for use.

Departments: Official Visits

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much was spent on overnight accommodation by civil servants within his Department's areas of responsibilities in the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: £969,303 was spent on overnight accommodation for civil servants within this Department's areas of responsibilities in the last 12 months (July 2006 to June 2007). This includes both UK and overseas overnight accommodation.
	This data is obtained from the Department's hotel booking agent and its travel agent. The figures will not include any accommodation bookings made outside of these arrangements as this information is not centrally captured.

Departments: Older Workers

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people aged  (a) over 55 years of age and  (b) over 60 years of age have been recruited by his Department in each of the last three years; and what percentage in each case this is of the number of new recruits in each year.

Gareth Thomas: The following table provides the requested recruitment information. The data refers to external recruits to the Department and does not include transfers from other Government Departments.
	
		
			   New recruits over 55 years of age  New recruits over 60 years of age 
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 2004 9 6 2 1 
			 2005 11 8 1 0.7 
			 2006 9 7 1 0.8

Departments: Pay

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many non-pensionable bonuses were awarded to members of staff in his Department in the last three years; and at what total cost.

Gareth Thomas: The former Department of Trade and Industry awarded non-consolidated bonuses in two formats:
	(a) Special bonuses to recognise performance in particularly demanding tasks or situations. Staff in receipt of a special bonus may also receive an annual performance award.
	(b) Annual performance awards paid to highly successful performance as part of the annual pay award.
	Based on the information available the number of staff receiving these awards in the last three years and total amount of bonuses for which this information can be provided is in the following table.
	
		
			   Special bonuses  Performance awards   
			  Financial year( 1)  Number of staff receiving( 2)  Total value (£)  Number of staff receiving( 2)  Total value (£)  Total value (£)  Percentage of pay bill 
			 2004-05 1,261 498,592 1,274 1,563,180 2,061,772 1.18 
			 2005-06 1,237 572,902 1,257 1,808,630 2,381,532 1.39 
			 2006-07 919 491,669 1,286 2,532,180 3,023,849 1.81 
			 (1 )Financial year running from 1 April to 31 March.  (2) Data presented as number of staff awarded bonuses, rather than number of bonuses awarded (as stated in the question) based on the latest data available.   Note:  The special bonuses and performance awards for non-SCS staff are paid on a non-consolidated, non-pensionable basis and do not increase the Department's pay-bill costs each year. For the SCS the Senior Salaries Review Body determines the level of expenditure to cover bonuses.

Departments: Travel

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much was spent by his Department on  (a) first class and  (b) business flights in the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: The amount spent on first class and business flights for the 2006 calendar year was:
	
		
			   £ 
			  (a) First Class Flights 173,035 
			  (b) Business Class Flights 2,584,247 
		
	
	The figures include both UK and overseas flights
	To obtain up to date figures would entail disproportionate costs.

Electronic Equipment: Exports

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many  (a) fridges,  (b) washing machines,  (c) cookers,  (d) televisions,  (e) video recorders,  (f) computer and monitors and  (g) other household electrical equipment were exported from the UK in each of the last five years; and how many items of each type of equipment were exported to each country in each year.

Gareth Thomas: Detailed information is published by HM Revenue and Customs in their Overseas Trade Statistics and at their website
	www.uktradeinfo.com.
	The following table shows recorded figures for the value and numbers of exports for selected standard international trade classification (SITC) codes.
	
		
			   77521  77511  69731  &  77586  761  76381  75220  &  75230 
			  SITC  Value  Number  Value  Number  Value  Number  Value  Number  Value  Number  Value  Number 
			 2002 23.9 0.4 20.4 0.1 241.8 4.9 619.6 9.0 186.9 90.9 2,795.7 7.4 
			 2003 28.0 1.5 24.1 0.2 222.7 4.4 582.0 5.3 164.8 3.3 2,669.0 3.9 
			 2004 30.2 0.4 35.1 0.2 161.8 2.5 806.2 6.3 198.2 2.4 2,427.6 3.6 
			 2005 41.5 1.5 55.0 1.1 155.8 1.8 798.0 6.8 225.3 2.0 2,434.6 4.1 
			 2006 48.7 0.8 59.1 0.4 146.2 2.0 1,071.0 10.1 395.5 3.1 2,979.6 10.6 
			  Notes: These SITC codes represent:  77521: refrigerators, household type (electric or other), whether or not containing a deep-freezer compartment.  77511: household or laundry-type washing machines (including machines which wash and dry), each of a dry linen capacity not exceeding 10 kg.  69731: domestic cooking appliances (e.g. kitchen stoves, cookers etc.) and plate warmers, non-electric, of iron or steel.  77586: microwave ovens, other ovens, cookers, cooking plates, boiling rings, grillers and roasters.  761: TV receivers (including monitors and projectors) whether or not incorporating radio receivers or recording/reproducing apparatus.  76381: video recording or reproducing apparatus, whether or not incorporating a video tuner. 75220: digital automatic data processing machines containing in the same housing at least a CPU and an input and output unit, whether or not combined.  75230: digital processing units, whether or not presented with rest of a system or containing one or two of: storage, input, output units.

Ethnic Groups: Equal Opportunities

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how his Department monitors staff and ethnicity data to identify any patterns of inequality or discrimination; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: The Department's Diversity Statement includes the aim to have a workforce that reflects the diverse community we serve, and the commitment to value and make the best use of the diversity of talent in the Department so that our people fulfil their potential and create the conditions for business success.
	Staff and ethnicity data is monitored in various different ways. These include:
	monitoring and reporting to the Department's Diversity Steering Group,
	review by the Cabinet Office and Peer Review as part of the monitoring of progress towards the targets in the Cabinet Office 10 point plan on diversity,
	Diversity Impact Assessments of major internal policies,
	monitoring and review of specific areas such as staff appraisal, recruitment and promotion rates and complaints in line with our commitments under the various Employment Duties,
	consultation with staff network groups and the Departmental Trade Union Side.
	The Department annually reviews progress against action plans detailed in the race equality scheme as part of the annual Departmental Report and legislation requires that the Secretary of State reviews and reports on the equality schemes every three years, the first of which is due in 2008. No departmental policies to date have been assessed as having adverse implications or demonstrating inequality or discrimination.

Industrial Disputes: Arbitration

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment his Department has made of the average cost to  (a) the Government,  (b) the employer and  (c) the employee of an employment dispute (i) resolved through an employment tribunal, (ii) resolved through mediation and (iii) in which mediation was unsuccessful.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent assessment of average costs of employment disputes to employers and employees was carried out by my Department was the 2003 Survey of Tribunal Applications. The next such survey is scheduled for the first half of 2008. Information on costs to the Government is provided in the annual reports of the Employment Tribunal Service. Average costs are not available for those cases going to mediation, as the Department does not conduct research on mediation of employment disputes outside of the Employment Tribunal System.

New Businesses: East Sussex

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many new businesses established in  (a) Eastbourne and  (b) East Sussex received Government (i) funding and (ii) assistance in each of the last five years.

Stephen Timms: Between 2004 and 2006 Sussex Enterprise (the Business Link for Sussex) provided funding and assistance to 45 new businesses in Eastbourne and 172 new businesses in East Sussex, a breakdown by year follows. In this case, new businesses are defined as those that were less than 12 months old at the time of the assistance.
	
		
			   Eastbourne  East Sussex 
			 2006-07 21 79 
			 2005-06 17 72 
			 2004-05 (6 months only) 7 21 
		
	
	Before October 2004 it is not possible for Sussex Enterprise to provide figures as a new database was adopted at that time; nor is it possible for the data to be disaggregated further without incurring disproportionate cost.
	Neither Eastbourne borough council nor East Sussex county council provided direct assistance to businesses over the course of the period.
	Further data on the number of businesses receiving funding or assistance from other sources is not stored centrally.

Nuclear Power

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the cost was of civil nuclear reactors generating electricity in the last year for which figures are available; and how much of that sum was accounted for by the cost of  (a) maintenance,  (b) staff salaries,  (c) security,  (d) transport of radioactive materials,  (e) radioactive waste removal,  (f) radioactive waste storage,  (g) purchasing nuclear fuel,  (h) radioactive accidents,  (i) non-radioactive accidents and  (j) accident insurance.

Malcolm Wicks: As regards British Energy, the company's accounts for the financial year 2006-07 show operating costs as follows:
	Nuclear fuel costs, consisting of the costs of procurement of uranium, conversion and enrichment services and fuel element fabrication (front end) and the costs of reprocessing, long-term storage and eventual disposal of the resulting waste products (back end)—full provision is also made for the projected back end costs of unburnt fuel at station closure): £278 million
	Materials and services costs, comprising the operating expenses of all power stations and support functions (including station maintenance and insurance costs): £562 million
	Staff costs across the whole of British Energy, totalling an average of 5,939 employees (4,148 at nuclear stations, 275 at Eggborough, and 1,516 in engineering, technical and corporate support): £374 million.
	As regards the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, the total cost of civil nuclear reactors generating electricity in the financial year 2006-07 was £273.17 million. This is broken down as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 Maintenance 30.10 
			 Staff Salaries 94.06 
			 Security 7.81 
			 Transport of Radioactive Materials 5.27 
			 Radioactive Waste Removal 1.62 
			 Radioactive Waste Storage 0.70 
			 Purchasing Nuclear Fuel 45.99 
			 Radioactive Accidents 0 
			 Non-Radioactive Accidents 0 
			 Accident Insurance 25.5 
		
	
	The NDA purchases its accident insurance through an insurance programme which, subject to policy terms and conditions, covers all of its sites. This includes sites which generate electricity from nuclear power such as Oldbury and Wylfa; sites which generate electricity by other means such as Maentwrog (hydro); fuel fabrication sites such as Springfields; sites that are now in decommissioning such as Trawsfynydd, Hunterston and Chapelcross; multi-activity sites such as Sellafield; and finally non-nuclear administrative sites such as offices. Insurers give no premium breakdown across the sites in the NDA estate. The total premium including insurance premium tax for all classes of insurance across all NDA sites was £25.5 million for financial year 2006-07. The NDA estimate between 7.5 per cent. and 17.5 per cent. of this is allocated to sites which generated electricity from nuclear power.

Telephone Services: Fees and Charges

David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what representations he has received from telephone services consumers complaining about surcharges for using other methods than direct debit to pay their telephone bills; and what steps he is taking to prevent such practices by telephone services providers.

Stephen Timms: The Department has received a number of representations from members of the public on this issue and these have been referred to Ofcom. On 6 June Ofcom announced it will carry out a full Review of communications providers' additional charges. The Review will cover charges for non-direct debit payments, as well as other additional charges including late payment, restoration of service arid early termination fees. It will cover fixed and mobile operators, and pay TV services.
	Ofcom will look at the nature and level of charges levied by communications providers and how well signposted and transparent such charges are. It will investigate how far consumers are aware of additional charges, whether they are able and willing to shop around on the basis of core prices arid additional charges rather than just core prices, and whether there are certain groups of consumers who are unable to do this and therefore may be disadvantaged.
	Ofcom expects to announce the conclusions of its Review in the autumn.